Tuesday, February 02, 2016

The war against the 'settlements' comes to TripAdvisor

Sorry for not posting for a couple of days - I've been swamped with work.

The war against the 'settlements' has come to AirBnB and to TripAdvisor. The Washington Post's William Booth reports that the 'Palestinians' are protesting the offering of rooms in 'settlements' on the popular Bed and Breakfast site, and that the result has been a rush by 'settlers' to list more homes (Hat Tip: Memeorandum).

The Airbnb host said that once his guests see the view, “nobody wants
to talk politics.” Igal Canaan, a Jewish settler, threw open the doors
of his designer apartment to reveal a jaw-dropping panorama of blue sky
and Judean wilderness.

“In the morning, you can see shepherds
with their flocks,” said Canaan, pointing out a distant village often
associated with the birth of the prophet Jeremiah. “The view is totally
biblical.”

All this, plus swimming pool, kitchenette, fast WiFi and maybe a “welcome” bottle of wine, just 20 minutes from Jerusalem, for about $80 per night.

The guest reviews call it awesome — but according to the Palestinians, it is also very wrong.

That's about what Mrs. Carl and I pay for the zimmer we occasionally rent in the Galilee (which includes a jacuzzi but not a swimming pool) and it's a heck of a lot closer to our Jerusalem home. Hmmm.

A few weeks ago, Saeb Erekat, secretary general of the Palestine
Liberation Organization, sent a terse letter to Airbnb chief executive
Brian Chesky in San Francisco, warning that his company was “effectively
promoting the illegal Israeli colonization of occupied land.”

Airbnb said in a statement to the Associated Press that it “follows law and regulations where it can do business.”

Indeed they do. And the government of Israel certainly has no problem with 'settlers'revenants renting out their homes. And perhaps Saeb - the 'Palestinians' perennial chief negotiatorbottle washer should have kept his mouth shut.

So what did some Jewish settlers with an extra bedroom do?

“Ever since the Palestinians started complaining, our people took this
as a challenge and have been rushing to Airbnb to list their
properties,” said Miri Maoz-Ovadia, a spokeswoman for the Binyamin
Regional Council.

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About Me

I am an Orthodox Jew - some would even call me 'ultra-Orthodox.' Born in Boston, I was a corporate and securities attorney in New York City for seven years before making aliya to Israel in 1991 (I don't look it but I really am that old :-). I have been happily married to the same woman for thirty-five years, and we have eight children (bli ayin hara) ranging in age from 13 to 33 years and nine grandchildren. Four of our children are married! Before I started blogging I was a heavy contributor on a number of email lists and ran an email list called the Matzav from 2000-2004. You can contact me at: IsraelMatzav at gmail dot com